Dyeing of threads, filaments, fibres and the like



United States Patent '0 DYEING OF THREADS, FILAMIENTS, FIBRES AND THE LIKE Leslie Arthur Bashford, Earlsdon, Coventry, England, assignor to Courtaulds Limited, London, England, a British company No Drawing. Filed Sept. 10, 1958, Ser. No. 760,100

Claims priority, application Great Britain Sept. 19, 1957 5 Claims. (Cl. 8-83) This invention relates to compositions for use in dyeing threads, filaments, fibres, fabrics and the like.

An advantageous method of dyeing hydrophobic threads and fabrics of synthetic materials, and in particular of cellulose triacetate, polymers and copolymers of acrylonitrile and polyethylene terephthalate, comprises immersing the threads or fabrics in a dyebath containing a dispersed acetate dyestuif in the presence of a cyclohexyl phenol, octyl phenol or octyl cresol as carrier. The substituted phenol may be included in the dyebath or the threads or fabric may be impregnated with the substituted phenol before being immersed in the dyebath. The effect of the carrier is to facilitate the dyeing operation, giving deeper shades with excellent fastness properties.

In making up the dyebaths or a pretreatment liquor containing these substituted phenol carriers, it is higlhy desirable that the carrier, which is water-insoluble, should be finely and evenly dispersed in the dyebath and remain so at elevated dyeing temperatures. The substituted phenol carriers do not readily disperse in water using standard methods and the present invention provides a stable composition containing the carrier which can be quickly stirred into hot water to produce a pretreatment bath or to produce a bath to which the dye may be added or which may be added to a dyebath by the dyer, as required, to produce a stable and even dispersion of the carrier in the water or dyebath.

According to this invention, a homogeneous composition for use in dyeing threads, filaments, fibres, fabrics and the like consists essentially of a mixture of a soap, a water-miscible alcohol having a boiling point above 75 C., water and a cyclohexyl phenol, octyl phenol, or octyl cresol, the weight of the soap in the mixture being from 40 to 80 percent, and preferably from 60 to 65 percent, of the Weight of the substituted phenol in the mixture.

For each 100 parts by weight of soap in the composition there are preferably from 60 to 200 parts byweight of water and from 150 to 200 parts by weight of the alcohol.

The preferred compositions of the present invention therefore contain the four ingredients specified in the following range of proportions by weight, taking the proportion of soap as the basis:

Soap 100 parts.

Substituted phenol 125250, and particularly 154-167 parts.

Water 60-200 parts.

Alcohol 150200 parts.

Preferred alcohols for use in this invention are npropyl, iso-propyl, and the tertiary-butyl alcohols.

The soap used may be any of the normal types of soap obtained by neutralising fatty acids containing at least 12 carbon atoms in the molecule, or mixtures of such acids, with an alkali such as caustic soda or caustic potash. The soap used preferably has a titer of 20 2,960,381 Patented Nov. 15, 1960 to 40; thus the alkali metal soaps of the fatty acids or mixed fatty acids present in olive oil, coconut oil, palmnut oil and cotton seed oil may be used with advantage in the present invention.

The cyclohexyl phenols which are used as dyestuff carriers in the compositions according to this invention are those having a cyclohexyl ring directly attached to a benzene ring, the latter having one hydroxyl group attached to it. Preferred compounds are those in which the hydroxyl group is in the para portion relative to the bond joining the benzene and cyclohexyl rings, i.e. para cyclohexyl phenol.

CH2CH2 r CH -OH:

The cyclohexyl ring may be substituted by alkyl groups as in the methyl cyclohexyl phenol and dimethyl cyclohexyl phenol represented by the formulae OHrCHz CHz-C Ha OHS-CH OHZ-CH Cfis and bornyl phenol (IJHa The compositions according to this invention may be conveniently prepared by mixing together the soap and the water until the soap is fully swollen, and then, while stirring and heating at 60-70 C., adding first the alcohol and then the substituted phenol in the solid or molten state. On cooling, a stable homogeneous liquid is obtained which can be stirred into an aqueous bath to form a pretreatment bath or into a dyebath as desired but preferably at 55 to 60 C. to give a stable finely-divided dispersion of the substituted phenol.

The invention is illustrated by the following examples, in which the parts are by weight.

Example 1 16 parts of low (20 to 22) titre soap based mainly on coconut oil were swollen at room temperature with 32v whereupon a clear homogeneous liquid was obtained. On adding this liquid to the requisite volume of hot water at 55 C., to produce a concentration of the substituted phenol of between 1 gram/litre andgramsflitre, a fine stable dispersion was formed which retained its stability on heating to the boil as in dyeing. The liquid obtained can be used for pretreating triacetate fabrics. Forpreparing a dyebath, a dispersed dyestufli is preferably added to the dispersion obtained but, the dyestufi may be added to the hot water before the dispersion is added.

In this example the alcohol. may be replaced by n propanol or by tertiary butyl alcohol.

Example 2 16 parts of low (20 to 22) titre soap based mainly on coconut oil were swollen at room temperature with 32 parts of water. 27 parts by weight of tertiary butyl alcohol were then added and the mixture was heated to 70 C. with continuous stirring. 25 parts of solid octyl phenol were then added and the heating at 70 C. and the stirring were continued until complete homogeneity was obtained. The mixture, on cooling, was a clear homogeneous liquid giving stable finely-divided dispersions for preparing pretreatment baths or dyebaths as described in Example 1.

In either of the examples described, other cyclohexyl phenols such as para-cyclohexyl phenol, methyl cyclohexyl phenol, bornyl phenol and menthyl phenol may be used.

What I claim is:

l. A homogeneous composition for use in dyeing filamentary material made by mixing 100 parts by weight of a soap and from to 200 parts by weight of water until the soap is fully swollen, raising the temperature of the mixture to 60 C. to C. and, while maintaining the mixture in said temperature range, stirring into the mixture first from 150 to 200 parts by Weight of a water miscible alcohol having a boiling point above C. and then from 125 to 250 parts of a substituted phenol selected from the group consisting of cyclohexyl phenol, substituted cyclohexyl phenol-s, octyl phenol and octyl cresol.

2. The composition claimed in claim 1 wherein the soap has a titre of 20 to 40.

3. The composition claimed in claim 1 wherein the alcohol is isopropanol.

4. The composition claimed in claim 1 wherein the substituted phenol is dimethyl cyclohexyl phenol.

5. The composition claimed in claim 1 in which the proportion of substituted phenol is from 154 to 167 parts by weight per parts of soap.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Heyman Feb. 12, 1946 OTHER REFERENCES 30 pp. P728-P73.2. 

1. A HOMOGENEOUS COMPOSITION FOR USE IN DYEING FILAMENTARY MATERIAL MADE BY MIXING 100 PARTS BY WEIGHT OF A SOAP AND FROM 60 TO 200 PARTS BY WEIGHT OF WATER UNTIL THE SOAP IS FULLY SWOLLEN RAISING THE TEMPERATURE OF THE MIXTURE TO 60*C. TO 70*C. AND, WHILE MAINTAINING THE MIXTURE IN SAID TEMPERATURE RANGE, STIRRING INTO THE MIXTURE FIRST FROM 150 TO 200 PARTS BY WEIGHT OF A WATER MISCIBLE ALCOHOL HAVING A BOILING POINT ABOVE 75*C. AND THEN FROM 125 TO 250 PARTS OF A SUBSTITUTED PHENOL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF CYCLOHEXYL PHENOL, SUBSTITUTED CYCLOHEXYL PHENOLS, OCTYL PHENOL AND OCTYL CRESOL. 